So you want to put King shocks on a Third Gen Montero...

[ChrisCosta416]

Gday mate any updates? Or can you drop any hints on what your up to regarding wheel travel?

Thanks Jim

I cannot unfortunately per the company. I will say the new parts have finished being milled and I am told, we will be testing in the next 2 weeks. I am dealing with 2 companies which is why I am getting a lot of back and forth!

 

[wolfdog]

Thankyou for the update mate, sounds very interesting. Its good to see someone doing something to gain some wheel travel. I am about to purchase a Pajero and coming from live axle 4wd's with long travel, the first thing on my to do list will be gaining more front wheel travel. I have a few ideas on ways to extend control arms and longer axles etc but will be watching what you come up with as buying something already tried will be the go. Keep us updated mate I will be a buyer.

jim

 

[ChrisCosta416]

Alrighty everyone, my truck is going to King on Sept 30th for the shock re-design and the new uni ball upper control arms will also be installed.

The benefits of the shock re-design and new uniball upper control arm will be

- greater travel for the front
- smoother ride
- cool factor obviously
- Shocks will now be a true plug and play. No fabrication or welding required. Saving YOU a lot of money.

 

[Toasty]

Uniball upper will be pretty sweet.

 

[ChrisCosta416]

Uniball upper will be pretty sweet.

I think they are planning some Gen2 stuff, at least I am pushing for it.

 

[Toasty]

I think they are planning some Gen2 stuff, at least I am pushing for it.

If they don't I'm planning on making a set for my '98 so i can run coilovers. Kings!

 

[wolfdog]

Great news mate are you able to measure before and after wheel travel, will be interesting to see what is gained.

jim

 

[ChrisCosta416]

Alrighty everyone....

The Experience
For those following, you will know how much time/money I had to spend to get the shocks to fit on the truck, well just got the truck back from King Shocks and before I say anything else I want to start by saying the folks over at King Shocks were fantastic! From the sales team/reception to Brian and Chris, everyone was very polite and responsive. King Shocks really do stand by their product and have some of the best customer service around. I am excited to try out the new shocks and will be excited to share the "bolt-on" design once I get a chance to chat with King on the new instructions for the shocks and when I remove the shocks myself to do some other work on the truck. Almost all of the issues have now been sorted out and the ride quality has been improved.

Shock changes
Now onto the shocks, I dropped my truck off a few weeks ago and met with the head of RnD. He looked over the truck and ask for my advice on how the shocks performed on and off-road. I let him know it felt somewhat stiff on-road and has quite a bit of body roll while turning. He mentioned he would be able to adjust the amount of oil that travels though the shock to control the body roll. He took it for a test drive to see how it drove and we left it at that. After picking up the vehicle 2 nights ago I see that King upgraded to the Finned Reservoirs and were able to shorten and adjust the angle of the hoses and find new mounting locations utilizing factory bolting points on the vehicle. When driving the past few days I noticed the truck felt even more controlled then before and I also had less body-roll.

(Please note: I am currently unaware if the Finned Design will be the only option available at this time)

Whats next?
One of the huge hurdles I had to overcome was the front coil-over coming in contact with the stock Gen3 control arms. I had to get the upper control arms cut and reinforced in order to eliminate the control arm hitting the coil-over at full extension. Once the arm was cut and re-welded I thought the arm was clear of hitting but it turns out it still came in contact just barely while at full extension. Well the folks at King turn out to be good buddies with the folks at Total Chaos Fabrication and in order for the King Shocks to fully work with the Gen3, new control arms would have to be fabricated to clear the coil-overs. This is where Total Chaos steps in, they have fabricated a tubular uni-ball upper control arm that works with the Gen3. I am waiting for the prototype arm to be finished and will head over to Total Chaos to get the new arm installed, of course pics will follow. I am told they should be ready in the coming weeks. These new arms should allow greater front suspension travel, increased ride comfort, and of course a stronger design.

For now enjoy some quick photos of the new King Shock Re-design on the truck!

 

[wolfdog]

Great write up mate thanks for taking the time. New shocks look good, very interested to hear the results of the new upper control arms.

jim

 

[Schitzangiggles]

I'll be in my bunk...
That's some sexy looking parts. Are they going to make the control arms longer? If they can/will, what's the cost going to be?

 

[ChrisCosta416]

Truck dropped off at Total Chaos today. I met with Mike and he gave me a tour of the shop.
They are a great group of folks and have been doing this for years.
Truck dropped off and will be with them for the install and fitment until Monday.

In other news I’m about to pull the trigger on a GFC tent. Any thoughts?

 

[Toasty]

...tents are stupid.

 

[ChrisCosta416]

...tents are stupid.

Toasty! shhh! Haha, I gave it a long thought and I tend to travel quickly through multiple spots so I THINK it would be beneficial. We shall see

 

[plh]

...tents are stupid.

hotels are better

 

[Schitzangiggles]

You should ask them how hard/$ it would be to have some longer upper and lower control arms would be to have made. Anyone have any idea on how much longer the control arms could be with the stock CV's?
I'm thinking if we had some slightly longer control arms, it would make the most use of our OEM limited amount of wheel travel especially when adding a 2” HD OME type lift springs.
Or would it be easier to put a "body lift" between the body and suspension subframe?